When searching for an assisted living facility, the most intriguing part is to decide what to look for. If you are searching just for curiosity it is totally different from when you are searching seriously for an immediate solution to the problems that you or your loved ones are now facing. In the latter case, you must take a very systematic approach to ensure that you can land up at some reliable facility like Platinum Communities that offer a home away from home with a focus on family living.
Start your search by first knowing what you need and then follow the steps discussed here.
Define your need
What makes you look for a new home or join a community must be clear in your mind by knowing the care deficiencies that you are currently facing. Consider what kind of help and support you need for daily living and how much you can handle independently. From bathing and dressing to taking medications, moving around safely, and the extent of social mixing opportunities that you need, think carefully so that you can establish the budget.
Create a budget
The budget for the assisted living facility will include many of the expenses that you pay currently as a homeowner like meals, taxes, utilities, etc. Senior living is not cheap, and the cost varies according to the level of service, support, and care that you need. Think about the financial resources at your disposal, like long-term care insurance that you can use for funding your assisted living.
Fix a location
Decide about the location by considering whether you want to stay in the vicinity of your current location, or it would be good for you to stay close to a major medical center. You might want to relocate just for the sake of adult children and their extended families. The location should ensure that you live in a locality that meets your needs.
Gather information
Online searches are best for locating senior living facilities, and visiting the websites of the centers will provide ample information to know in detail what to expect from it in terms of services, amenities, the kind of care available, and life enrichment programs. Make a list of communities and then do detailed research by gathering information about the ground conditions by going through reviews about the centers. The comments on Facebook are another source for gathering information about how others feel about the places that you take an interest in. Besides, you can seek live referrals by asking around to know the experience of people who have been there and gone through it.
Contact and visit
The exercise will help to shorten the list further, and then you must contact the centers and even visit the places to see for yourself how things are so that you can match it with the information already gathered.
The visit will help to understand better the relationships between residents and the staff as well as the environment of the place, which are critical for assessing suitability.
